Procol Harum

Beyond
the Pale

Rupert's People

A close encounter
between Procol Harum and Peter Solley in 1967

Record Collector in their December 1999 issue ran an
article about the band Rupert's People. In the
article about RP and its predecessor Sweet Feeling,
there is a paragraph that might amuse Procol Harum fans. Article
by Nigel Lees.

Sweet Feeling continued to gig,
now placing more emphasis on volume than they had done
previously, inspired by the leading power trios of the time such
as the Jimi Hendrix Experienceand Cream.
By then, Howard Conder had come to regard Rod (Lynton) as his
principal songwriter, and asked him to work with the budding
songwriter Chris Andrews(aka Tim Andrews) of Fleur
de Lys, which saw the creation of a new song, Hold on.
Rod also introduced his re-arranged (and retitled) Reflections
of Charles Brown. The writers also worked with organist Peter Solley (ironically,
later of Procol Harum) recording two songs with Rod present, but
not contributing to the finished masters. As he'd done previously
with All So Long Ago, Conder presented this new work to
Columbia and secured a deal for Fleur de Lys. However, the band
decided against signing with Conder and pulled out, leaving him
with an investment but no band. He did have a new group name
dreamed up by his wife Annette, however - Rupert's People.

Although the split only temporarily
delayed the release of Charles Brown it was a serious
obstacle, as the similar A
Whiter Shade of Pale
was racing up the charts and selling by the lorryload. Charles
Brown still garnered airplay, however, and sold reasonably
well, though its late issue prompted obvious Procol Harumcomparisons in the music press. Rod insists that he had never
heard Pale while composing Reflections, and it
must be remembered that the source, Bach's Air
on a G String, was an
often-heard tune at the time, through adverts and other sources.